This area is part of the Grand Kankakee Marsh system and the site of the largest natural lake in Indiana until it was drained. Beaver Lake was 7 miles (11 km) long and 5 miles (8.0 km) wide. As a shallow lake, only 10 feet (3.0 m) deep, it was filled with vegetation and wildlife. It was drained by the 1880s. The Nature Conservancy purchased 7,200 acres (2,900 ha) of farmland in 1996 with the aim of restoring as a prairie.[2]
Bison roamed through Indiana when the eastern pioneers first arrived in the state. Explorers reported bison in the 1600s and 1700s. An 1824 traveler encountered a single bison near the modern location of the preserve and shot it. Bison were extirpated from Indiana by 1830.[4] Twenty-three American bison were introduced to the Kankakee Sands in October of 2016. The bison are from the Wind Cave National Park. Bison were indigenous to Indiana until exterminated by 1790. The bison provide management of the grasses on the prairie.[5] They prefer grasses and sedges, leaving the flowering plants, which support a range of insects and animals.[6] In addition, the bison, reduce the height of the plants, supporting ground dwelling birds. As of 2021 the bison herd had grown to more than 90 individuals.[7]
Flora and faunaedit
The preserve supports a wide variety of plant and animal species.
247 birds: Winter is the best time to see wintering owls and Rough-legged Hawks. From March thru June is best for seeing migrating and breeding prairie birds.[9]
Marshes: American coot, American bittern, black rail, night-heron, great blue heron, great egret, green heron, king rail, least bittern, pied-billed grebe, sandhill crane, snowy egret, sora, tricolored heron, Virginia rail, white ibis, white-faced ibis, yellow rail[10]
^"Visit Kankakee Sands". The Nature Conservancy. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
^ ab"Efroymson Restoration at Kankakee Sands | Overview". The Nature Conservancy. Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
^Phillippe, Loy R.; Molano-Flores, Brenda; Murphy, Michael J.C.; Marcum, Paul B.; Ebinger, John E. (2011). "Status of Endangered and Threatened Sand Area Species of the Illinois Flora". Illinois Natural History Survey Bulletin. 39 (4) – via CORE.
^Staff writer (August 29, 2017). "Bison at Kankakee Sands". South Shore Indiana, Visitor and Convention Authority. Retrieved November 6, 2021.
^Bowman, Dale (October 30, 2021). "Bison through the chute to their new home: Young bulls arrive and acclimate at Kankakee Sands". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved November 1, 2021.
^"Efroymson Restoration at Kankakee Sands | Bison at Kankakee Sands". The Nature Conservancy. Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
^"Bison at Kankakee Sands". South Shore Convention & Visitors Authority. 2021. Archived from the original on April 15, 2021. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
^Welcome to the Grace Teninga Discover Trail, Efroymson Restoration at Kankakee Sands; The Nature Conservancy; undated
^ abcdef"Efroymson Restoration at Kankakee Sands | Animals at the Kankakee Sands | Birds". The Nature Conservancy. Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. Retrieved August 28, 2021.